Electronic component assembly structure and electrical junction box

ABSTRACT

An electronic component includes a main body section having a rectangular parallelepiped shape and terminal portions disposed in the main body section. A housing member includes a first housing chamber that guides and accommodates the main body section therein and a second housing chamber that accommodates and holds terminal fittings therein. Each terminal portion includes a fitting portion that droops along a side surface of the main body section with a gap from the side surface and that is fitted to the corresponding terminal fitting. Each terminal fitting includes a spring portion that presses the corresponding fitting portion, and a pressing direction of the spring portion is held to direct to the corresponding wall portion. The electronic component, the terminal fittings, and the housing member are mutually assembled.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation application of InternationalApplication PCT/JP2014/059814, filed on Apr. 3, 2014, and designatingthe U.S., the entire contents of which are incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an electronic component assemblystructure in which an electronic component, terminal fittings ofelectrical wires, and a housing member accommodating the electroniccomponent and the terminal fittings therein are mutually assembled, andan electrical junction box having the assembly structure.

2. Description of the Related Art

In general, a vehicle such as an automobile is equipped with anelectronic component module in which various electronic components areassembled. Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2010-221787discloses a configuration of an electrical junction box (junction box)including a relay module to control connection between a power supplydevice and an electric component.

FIG. 19 is a longitudinal-sectional view of a relay module according tothe related art. FIG. 19 illustrates a configuration of the relay moduleaccording to the related art and such a relay 90 includes a relay mainbody 91 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape and a plurality ofplate-like terminal portions (hereinafter, referred to as relayterminals) 92 protruding in a straight line shape from one surface(bottom surface) of the relay main body 91. Such a type of relay 90 isassembled into a resinous holding member 95, which holds terminalfittings 94 connected to electrical wires 93, to constitute a relaymodule. The relay module is assembled into an electrical junction box.FIG. 19 is basically a longitudinal-sectional view of the relay moduleaccording to the related art and illustrates only the relay main body 91in a side view.

In the relay module according to the related art illustrated in FIG. 19,a spring portion 96 to which the relay terminal 92 is fitted is formedin each terminal fitting 94, and the relay 90 is held in the holdingmember 95 by inserting and fitting the tips of the plurality of relayterminals 92 into the spring portions 96. Accordingly, in inserting therelay terminals 92 into the spring portions 96, the relay 90 is likelyto be inclined until the relay terminals 92 are fitted to the springportions 96. Since the inclination direction of the relay 90 is notparticularly regulated, the relay 90 may be inclined in any direction ofthe front, back, right, and left directions and the inclinationdirection. FIGS. 20A and 20B are enlarged views illustrating apositional relationship between the relay terminals and the terminalfittings (plate portions and spring portions) in the relay moduleaccording to the related art. For example, when the relay 90 is inclinedto the left in FIG. 19, the tips of the relay terminals 92 are directedto the spring portions 96 as illustrated in FIG. 20A. When the relayterminals 92 move to the spring portions 96 in this state, asillustrated in FIG. 20B, the relay terminals 92 may collide with thespring portions 96 to damage the spring portions 96 in a state the relayterminals depart from a proper insertion direction with respect to theterminal fittings 94 (a downward direction of the vertical direction inthe drawing).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been made in consideration of theabove-mentioned circumstances and an object thereof is to suppressdamage of a spring portion of a terminal fitting in an electroniccomponent module.

In order to achieve the above mentioned object, an electronic componentassembly structure according to one aspect of the present inventionincludes an electronic component; a terminal fitting to which theelectronic component is fitted; and a housing member in which theelectronic component and the terminal fitting are accommodated, whereinthe electronic component includes a main body section having arectangular parallelepiped shape and a terminal portion disposed in themain body section, the housing member includes a first housing chamberthat guides and accommodates the main body section therein and a secondhousing chamber that accommodates and holds the terminal fittingtherein, the first housing chamber is formed by surrounding four sidesthereof with a frame-like wall portion rising upright from a bottomportion, and the second housing chamber is formed outside the wallportion interposed therebetween, the terminal portion includes a fittingportion that droops along a side surface of the main body section with agap from the side surface and that is fitted to the terminal fitting,the terminal fitting includes a spring portion that presses the fittingportion, and a pressing direction of the spring portion is held todirect to the wall portion, and the electronic component, the terminalfitting, and the housing member are mutually assembled.

According to this configuration, the main body section is inserted intothe first housing chamber before the fitting portions are fitted to theterminal fittings. When the electronic component is inclined, the mainbody section comes in contact with the wall portions and it is thuspossible to regulate the inclination direction of the electroniccomponent. That is, it is possible to regulate the inclination directionof the electronic component such that the tips of the fitting portionsof the terminal portions located on the inclined side are directed tothe wall portions. In the terminal fittings, the plate portion (pressingdestination of the spring portion) facing the spring portion ispositioned inside (on the wall portion side) the proper insertionposition of the fitting portion, and the spring portion is positionedoutside (on the opposite side to the wall portion) the proper insertionposition of the fitting portion. Accordingly, the tip of the fittingportion inclined inward is directed to the plate portion, not to thespring portion. Therefore, even when the fitting portion moves to theterminal fitting in this state, the tip thereof collides with the plateportion and it is thus possible to prevent the terminal portion (fittingportion) from colliding with the spring portion in a state in which theterminal portion departs from the proper insertion direction.

In this case, it is possible to configure that the second housingchamber includes an elastically deformable locking piece that holds theterminal fitting and that is disposed on the opposite side to the wallportion with the terminal fitting interposed therebetween.

Accordingly, since the terminal fittings can be disposed to be close tothe wall portions and the spring portions of the terminal fittings canbe positioned outside the plate portions, it is possible to decrease thegap between the fitting portion of each terminal portion and the sidesurface of the main body section and thus to decrease the size of theelectronic component.

In configuring an electrical junction box including the above mentionedelectronic component assembly structure, it is possible to suppressdamage of the terminal fitting in the electrical junction box.

The above and other objects, features, advantages and technical andindustrial significance of this invention will be better understood byreading the following detailed description of presently preferredembodiments of the invention, when considered in connection with theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the entire configuration of arelay module in which a relay, terminal fittings, and a housing memberare mutually assembled;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the relay module (one of two relays is notillustrated) illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3A is a longitudinal-sectional view of the relay module when viewedfrom the direction of arrow A10 in FIG. 1 and is a diagram illustratinga state in which the relay is inclined when inserting the relay into thehousing member;

FIG. 3B is a longitudinal-sectional view of the relay module when viewedfrom the direction of arrow A10 in FIG. 1 and is an enlarged viewillustrating a positional relationship between a tab of a relay and aterminal fitting (a plate portion and a spring portion) in FIG. 3A;

FIG. 4A is a longitudinal-sectional view of the relay module when viewedfrom the direction of arrow A10 in FIG. 1 and is a diagram illustratinga state in which the relay has a proper insertion posture with respectto the housing member;

FIG. 4B is a longitudinal-sectional view of the relay module when viewedfrom the direction of arrow A10 in FIG. 1 and is a diagram illustratinga state in which the relay has been assembled into the housing member;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a terminalfitting according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating another configuration of theterminal fitting;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a first modification example;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a second modification example;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a third modification example;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a fourth modification example;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a fifth modification example;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a sixth modification example;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a seventh modification example;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to an eighth modification example;

FIG. 16 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a ninth modification example;

FIG. 17 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a relayaccording to a tenth modification example;

FIG. 18A is a perspective view illustrating the entire configuration ofa relay according to an eleventh modification example;

FIG. 18B is a view illustrating a configuration of the relay accordingto the eleventh modification example when viewed from the direction ofarrow A18 in FIG. 18A;

FIG. 19 is a longitudinal-sectional view illustrating a relay moduleaccording to the related art;

FIG. 20A is an enlarged view illustrating a positional relationshipbetween a relay terminal and a terminal fitting (a plate portion and aspring portion) in the relay module according to the related art; and

FIG. 20B is an enlarged view illustrating a positional relationshipbetween the relay terminal and the terminal fitting (a plate portion anda spring portion) in the relay module according to the related art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, an electronic component module having an electroniccomponent assembly structure according to an embodiment of the presentinvention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.In this embodiment, a relay is used as an electronic component, but theelectronic component is not limited to the relay and may employ anotherelectronic component having a configuration common to the relay whichwill be described below, such as a fuse or a module componentincorporated into a substrate. The usage of the relay module accordingto this embodiment is not particularly limited, but a case can beconsidered in which the relay module is used for equipment or the likefor controlling a connection state between a power supply device and anelectric component in a vehicle such as an automobile. Such a type ofrelay module can be provided as one constituent member of an electricaljunction box, but can be treated as an independent body other than aconstituent member of the electrical junction box and can guarantee arelay function even as an independent body.

FIGS. 1 to 4 illustrate a relay assembly structure according to anembodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustratingthe entire configuration of a relay module 1 in which a relay 2,terminal fittings 3, and a housing member 4 are mutually assembled. FIG.2 is a plan view (one of two relays 2 is not illustrated) of the relaymodule 1 illustrated in FIG. 1. FIGS. 3 and 4 illustratelongitudinal-sections of the relay module 1 when viewed from thedirection of arrow A10 in FIG. 1, where FIG. 3A is a diagramillustrating a state in which the relay 2 is inclined when inserting therelay into the housing member 4 and FIG. 3B is an enlarged viewillustrating a positional relationship between a terminal portion (tab)22 of the relay 2 and the terminal fitting 3 (a plate portion 34 and aspring portion 35) in FIG. 3A. FIG. 4A is a diagram illustrating a statein which the relay 2 has a proper insertion posture with respect to thehousing member 4 and FIG. 4B is a diagram illustrating a state in whichthe relay 2 has been assembled into the housing member 4. In thefollowing description, a direction indicated by arrow A11 in FIG. 1 isdefined as an vertical direction, a direction indicated by arrow A12 isdefined as a horizontal direction, and a direction indicated by arrowA13 is defined as a front-back direction (hereinafter, the same appliesto the drawings other than FIG. 1). Regarding the vertical direction,the upward direction in FIG. 1 is defined as upward (upside) and thedownward direction is defined as downward (downside). However, thevertical direction, the horizontal direction, and the front-backdirection may not match the respective directions (for example, thevertical direction, the horizontal direction, and the front-backdirection of a vehicle) in a state in which the relay module 1 isactually mounted on a vehicle. Various components accommodated in arelay main body 21 are not illustrated in FIGS. 3A, 4A, and 4B.

In this embodiment, the relay module 1 has a configuration in which therelay 2, the terminal fittings 3 to which the relay 2 is fitted, and thehousing member 4 that accommodates the relay 2 and the terminal fittings3 therein are mutually assembled. The relay 2 includes a main bodysection (hereinafter, referred to as a relay main body) 21 having arectangular parallelepiped shape and terminal portions (hereinafter,referred to as tabs) 22 (22 a to 22 d) which are disposed in the relaymain body 21. In this embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 1, it isassumed that one relay module 1 includes two relays 2. However, thenumber of relays constituting one relay module is not particularlylimited and the relay module may include only one relay or may includethree or more relays. When the relay module includes a plurality ofrelays, only the same type of relays 2 as illustrated in FIG. 1 may beemployed or another type of relays (for example, relays 2 a to 2 killustrated in FIGS. 8 to 18) may be mixed.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of the relayaccording to this embodiment. FIG. 5 illustrates an example of the relay2 according to this embodiment. The relay 2 has a configuration in whichthe relay main body 21 is formed of a resin or the like and conductivemetal tabs 22 are disposed in the relay main body 21. The relay mainbody 21 has surfaces facing each other in the vertical direction(hereinafter, referred to as a top surface 21 a and a bottom surface 21b), surfaces facing each other in the horizontal direction (hereinafter,referred to as a left side surface 21 c and a right side surface 21 d),and surfaces facing each other in the front-back direction (hereinafter,referred to as a front surface 21 e and a back surface 21 f). In thiscase, the relay main body 21 is positioned such that the horizontaldirection is set as the longitudinal direction thereof and the left sidesurface 21 c, the right side surface 21 d, the front surface 21 e, andthe back surface 21 f are set as side surfaces. In this embodiment, therelay main body 21 is formed, for example, in a rectangularparallelepiped shape, but the relay main body may be formed in a squareparallelepiped shape.

Each tab 22 includes a base end 24 (24 a to 24 d) protruding from therelay main body 21 and a fitting portion 25 (25 a to 25 d) that isfitted to the corresponding terminal fitting 3. In this case, thefitting portion 25 extends from the protruding tip of the base end 24and droops along one side surface of the relay main body 21 with a gapfrom the side surface. The number of tabs 22 or the width or thicknessthereof can be arbitrarily set. For example, when the relay 2 includes aplurality of tabs 22, all the tabs 22 may be set to have the same widthand the same thickness or the tabs 22 may be set to have differentwidths or thicknesses. In each tab 22, the protruding position or theprotruding length of the base end 24 from the relay main body 21, theheight position of the extending tip of the fitting portion 25, theextending size from the base end 24, or the like can be arbitrarily setand is not particularly limited. Here, the fitting portion 25 extendsfrom the protruding tip of the base end 24 such that the extending tipdoes not protrude from the bottom surface 21 b of the relay main body21.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the relay 2 according to this embodimentincludes four tabs 22 having a plate shape, in which two tabs 22 a and22 b are arranged on the left side surface 21 c of the relay main body21 and the other two tabs 22 c and 22 d are arranged on the right sidesurface 21 d. In this case, four base ends 24 a to 24 d protrude fromthe same height (positions at which the distances from the bottomsurface 21 b in the vertical direction are the same) by the same length(size in the horizontal direction). Four fitting portions 25 a to 25 dextend substantially at right angle and downward from the protrudingtips of the base ends 24 a to 24 d and the positions of the extendingtips of the fitting portions 25 a to 25 d are arranged at the sameheight.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a terminalfitting according to this embodiment. FIG. 6 illustrates an example ofthe configuration of the terminal fitting 3 according to thisembodiment. The terminal fitting 3 is an interface member that isconnected to a terminal section 51 of an electrical wire 5 so as toelectrically connect the electrical wire 5 to the relay 2. The terminalfitting 3 is formed by machining a conductive metal sheet and includes afemale connection portion 31 to which the fitting portion 25 of the tab22 is fitted, a pair of core clamping pieces 32 that caulk a core wire53 exposed by peeling an insulating coating 52 of the terminal section51 of the electrical wire 5, and a pair of external clamping pieces 33that caulk a tip of the insulating coating 52 of the electrical wire 5.

The connection portion 31 includes a flat plate portion 34 that supportsthe fitting portion 25 of the fitted tab 22 and the spring portion 35that presses the fitting portion 25 and is configured to fit the fittingportion 25, which is pressed against the plate portion 34 by the springportion 35, between the plate portion 34 and the spring portion 35. Thespring portion 35 is formed in a pair of convex shapes by causing bothends in the front-back direction of the plate portion 34 to rise uprightand curving the tips thereof toward the vicinity of the center in thefront-back direction of the plate portion 34. Accordingly, the springportion 35 is configured to apply a pressing force (elastic restorationforce) to the fitting portion 25 to be able to fit the fitting portion25 by elastically deforming the tips thereof in a direction in which itis separated from the plate portion 34.

The spring portion 35 includes an inclination portion 35 a guiding thefitting portion 25, and the inclination portion 35 a is formed to beinclined from the outside to the inside (from a frame portion 45 to awall portion 44 in the housing member 4 to be described later) in thefitting direction (downward direction of the vertical direction) of thefitting portion 25. In this embodiment, the inclination portion 35 a isformed by inclining the top end face of the spring portion 35 such thatthe spring portion 35 smoothly moves downward from a position mostprotruding from the plate portion 34 to the plate portion 34.Accordingly, the inclination portion 35 a can guide the fitting portion25 to a position between the plate portion 34 and the spring portion 35when fitting the fitting portion 25 of the tab 22 to the connectionportion 31.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of the terminal fitting 3 in which theconnection portion 31 is called a fastening type, but the terminalfitting 3 is not limited to this type. For example, like a terminalfitting 300 according to a modification example illustrated in FIG. 7, aconnection portion 310 may be configured to have a substantially tubularshape, to provide the inside of a tubular portion 360 with a plate-likespring portion, and to press the fitting portion 25 of the tab 22against the inner wall of the tubular portion 360 with the springportion to be able to fit the fitting portion to the connection portion.FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating another configuration of theterminal fitting. In this case, the spring portion of the terminalfitting 300 is formed such that the pressing direction of the fittingportion 25 is directed to the wall portion 44 of the housing member 4.In the terminal fitting 300 illustrated in FIG. 7, the same elements asin the terminal fitting 3 (FIG. 6) are referenced by the same referencenumerals in the drawings. In FIGS. 6 and 7, the configuration in whichthe terminal fitting 3 or 300 is connected to the terminal section 51 ofthe electrical wire 5 is illustrated as an example, but the terminalfitting 3 or 300 can be connected to a connecting substrate, aconnector, or the like.

The housing member 4 is a resinous casing for accommodating and holdingthe relay 2 and the terminal fittings 3 and includes a first housingchamber 41 that guides and accommodates the relay main body 21 thereinand a second housing chamber 42 that accommodates and holds the terminalfittings 3 therein. In this embodiment, the housing member 4 is treatedas a single member which is independent of the electrical junction box.Accordingly, a locking portion 40 that can engage with a locked portion(for example, locking groove) formed in a casing of the electricaljunction box so as to attach the housing member to the casing of theelectrical junction box is formed to protrude from the housing member 4.By causing the locking portion 40 to engage with the locked portion, thehousing member 4 can be locked and attached to the casing of theelectrical junction box. Here, the housing member 4 can be formed as apart of the casing of the electrical junction box and can be treated asa unified body so as not to be detached from the electrical junctionbox. The numbers of relays 2 and terminal fittings 3 which areaccommodated in the housing member 4 are not particularly limited. Inthis embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the configuration in whichtwo relays 2 are accommodated in one housing member 4 is assumed. Inother words, the housing member 4 includes two sets of relayaccommodating spaces including one first housing chamber 41 and twosecond housing chambers 42. Since each relay 2 is provided with fourtabs 22, eight terminal fittings 3 are accommodated in one housingmember 4. Since two tabs 22 are disposed on each of the left sidesurface 21 c and the right side surface 21 d of the relay main body 21,a pair of second housing chambers 42 are disposed to face each other inthe housing member 4 with the first housing chamber 41 interposedtherebetween and two terminal fittings 3 are accommodated and held ineach second housing chamber 42.

As illustrated in FIG. 4B, the height position of the relay main body 21in a state in which the relay 2 is assembled into the housing member 4is determined depending on the positions at which the fitting portions25 of the tabs 22 are fitted to the connection portions 31 of theterminal fittings 3. That is, each terminal fitting 3 is held in thesecond housing chamber 42 at height positions (the same height) at whichthe connection portion 31 to which the fitting portion 25 of the tab 22is fitted faces the side surface (the left side surface 21 c and theright side surface 21 d) of the relay main body 21 accommodated in thefirst housing chamber 41 with the wall portions 44 interposedtherebetween. The top end face of the wall portion 44 is positioned at apredetermined height below the top end face of the frame portion 45 soas not to come in contact with the base ends 24 of the tabs 22 when thefitting portions 25 of the tabs 22 are fitted to the connection portions31 of the terminal fittings 3, and a bottom portion 43 thereof ispositioned at a predetermined height which does not come in contact withthe bottom surface 21 b of the relay main body 21. Accordingly, sincethe relay 2 is held in the housing member 4 without interfering with thebottom portion 43 or the top end face of the wall portion 44 except forparts in which the fitting portions 25 of the tabs 22 are fitted to theconnection portions 31 of the terminal fittings 3 in the heightdirection of the housing member 4, it is possible to satisfactorilyconnect the tabs 22 to the terminal fittings 3 and thus to stabilize theholding force of the relay 2.

Four sides of the first housing chamber 41 are surrounded with a wallportion 44 that rises upright from the bottom portion 43 to form arecessed space of which the top is opened to the outside as illustratedin FIGS. 1 to 4. The wall portion 44 rises upward from the bottomportion 43 so as to surround the side surfaces (the left side surface 21c, the right side surface 21 d, the front surface 21 e, and the backsurface 21 f) of the relay main body 21 along the side surfaces andguides and accommodates the relay main body 21 into the first housingchamber 41. In this case, the first housing chamber 41 has asubstantially rectangular parallelepiped shape larger than the relaymain body 21 so as to smoothly accommodate the relay main body 21 guidedby the wall portion 44.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a locking groove 44 a for engaging with aprotrusion 23 formed on the front surface 21 e is formed on the wallportion 44 rising upright to face the front surface 21 e of the relaymain body 21. Accordingly, in a state in which the relay main body 21 isaccommodated in the first housing chamber 41, the protrusion 23 canengage with the locking groove 44 a to lock the relay main body 21 tothe first housing chamber 41. That is, the assembling force between therelay 2 and the housing member 4 due to the fitting of the tabs 22 andthe terminal fittings 3 can be complemented using the engagement betweenthe protrusion 23 and the locking groove 44 a. If the complement is notnecessary, the protrusion 23 and the locking groove 44 a may be skipped.As illustrated in FIGS. 3A, 4A, and 4B, the bottom portion 43 may beprovided with a reinforcing rib 43 a protruding downward.

The second housing chambers 42 are disposed outside the first housingchamber 41 with the wall portion 44 interposed therebetween, aresurrounded with rectangular tubular frames formed by the wall portion 44and the frame portion 45 of the housing member 4, and forms arectangular parallelepiped space of which the top and the bottom areopened to the outside. The second housing chambers 42 are provided withan elastically deformable locking piece (hereinafter, referred to as alance) 46 for holding each terminal fitting 3 on the opposite side (theframe portion 45 side) to the wall portion 44 with the terminal fittings3 interposed therebetween.

The lance 46 is formed of the same resin as the housing member 4 andextends in a cantilever shape from the frame portion 45 to the terminalfitting 3, specifically, the spring portion 35. That is, the lance 46constitutes a so-called spring mechanism, and achieves fixation of theterminal fitting 3 to the second housing chamber 42 and holds theterminal fitting 3 in the second housing chamber 42 by pressing andlocking the lower edge of the spring portion 35 with a restoration forcefrom the elastic deformation. As illustrated in FIGS. 3A, 4A, and 4B,each terminal fitting 3 is held such that the pressing direction of thespring portion 35 is directed to the wall portion 44.

The relay 2 is assembled into the housing member 4 in a state in whichthe terminal fittings 3 are held in the second housing chambers 42. Whenthe relay 2 has a proper insertion posture (a posture in which the relay2 is not inclined and extends in the vertical direction as illustratedin FIG. 4A) with respect to the housing member 4 in fitting the tabs 22to the terminal fittings 3, the tabs 22 can be directed in the properinsertion direction (downward direction in the vertical direction inFIG. 4A) with respect to the terminal fittings 3. Accordingly, the tabs22 do not move toward the terminal fittings 3 in a state in which theextending tips thereof are directed to the spring portions 35 (see FIG.20A), and do not collide with the spring portions 35 in a state in whichthe tabs 22 depart from the proper insertion direction (see FIG. 20B).Furthermore, in this embodiment, even when the relay 2 is inclined inassembling the relay into the housing member 4, it is possible toprevent the extending tips of the fitting portions 25 from departingfrom the proper insertion direction and colliding with the springportions 35 (the state illustrated in FIG. 20B).

In this embodiment, since each tab 22 has a configuration in which thefitting portion 25 droops along the side surface of the relay main body21 with a gap from the side surface, the relay main body 21 is insertedinto the first housing chamber 41 before the fitting portions 25 arefitted to the terminal fittings 3. Accordingly, when the relay 2 isinclined, the relay main body 21 can come in contact with the wallportion 44 to regulate the inclination direction of the relay 2. Thatis, the inclination direction of the relay 2 is regulated such that theextending tip of the fitting portion 25 of the tab 22 which is locatedon the inclined side is directed to the wall portion 44 of the housingmember 4. For example, when the relay 2 is inclined as illustrated inFIG. 3A, the fitting portion 25 c of the tab 22 c located on theinclined side is inclined to the outside (the frame portion 45 side ofthe housing member 4) and the extending tip thereof is directed to theinside (the wall portion 44 side of the housing member 4). On the otherhand, since the terminal fittings 3 are held such that the pressingdirection of the spring portion 35 is directed to the wall portion 44,the spring portion 35 can be positioned outside (on the frame portion 45side) the proper insertion position (gap between the plate portion 34and the spring portion 35) of the fitting portion 25 c, and the plateportion 34 can be positioned inside (on the wall portion 44 side) theproper insertion position. Accordingly, the extending tip of the fittingportion 25 c inclined inward can be directed to the plate portion 34,not to the spring portion 35, as illustrated in FIG. 3B. As a result,even when the fitting portion 25 c moves ahead in this state, theextending tip thereof collides with the plate portion 34 and can beprevented from colliding with the spring portion 35 as in the stateillustrated in FIG. 20B. On the other hand, since the relay main body 21is inserted into the first housing chamber 41 and the inserted relaymain body 21 is guided along the wall portion 44 as illustrated in FIG.3A, the relay 2 can be made to have the proper insertion posture withrespect to the housing member 4 as illustrated in FIG. 4A even in theinclined state and the tab 22 c can be directed in the proper insertiondirection with respect to the terminal fitting 3. Therefore, accordingto this embodiment, even when the relay 2 is inclined in fitting thetabs 22 to the terminal fittings 3, it is possible to prevent the tab 22from colliding with the spring portions 35 (see FIG. 20B) in a state inwhich the tab departs from the proper insertion direction and thus tosuppress damage such as deformation from occurring in the spring portion35.

When the relay 2 is inclined as illustrated in FIG. 3A, the extendingtip of the fitting portion 25 a of the tab 22 a located on the oppositeside to the inclined side is directed to the spring portion 35 (theoutside), not to the plate portion 34 (the inside). However, asdescribed above, since the relay main body 21 is guided along the wallportion 44 and the relay 2 is made to have a proper insertion posturewith respect to the housing member 4 as illustrated in FIG. 4A, it ispossible to direct the tab 22 a in the proper insertion direction wheninserting the fitting portion 25 a into the terminal fitting 3.Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the tab 22 a as well as the tab22 c from colliding with the spring portion 35 (see FIG. 20B) in a statein which the extending tip of the fitting portion 25 a departs from theproper insertion direction and thus to suppress damage of the springportion 35. Even when the relay 2 is inclined to the opposite side tothe side illustrated in FIG. 3A, the fitting portions 25 a and 25 c canbe prevented from colliding with the spring portions 35 in the same wayexcept that the tab 22 a and the tab 22 c move in the oppositedirections and it is thus possible to suppress damage of the springportions 35. The tabs 22 b and 22 d in assembling the relay 2 into thehousing member 4 move in the same way as the tabs 22 a and 22 c and arenot different from each other in operational effects. According to thisembodiment, it is possible to assemble the relay 2 into the housingmember 4 while preventing damage of the spring portions 35 in this way(the state illustrated in FIG. 4B).

In this embodiment, since the lance 46 is not disposed between theterminal fitting 3 and the wall portion 44 but the lance 46 is disposedbetween the terminal fitting 3 and the frame portion 45, it is possibleto decrease the space between the terminal fitting 3 and the wallportion 44. Accordingly, since the terminal fittings 3 can be arrangedclose to the wall portion 44 and the spring portions 35 of the terminalfittings 3 can be positioned outside (on the frame portion 45 side) theplate portions 34, the fitting portions 25 of the tabs 22 can be fittedto the terminal fittings 3 in the vicinity of the side surfaces of therelay main body 21. As a result, it is possible to decrease theprotruding length of the base ends 24 from the side surfaces of therelay main body 21 and thus to decrease the gap between the sidesurfaces and the fitting portions 25. Accordingly, it is possible toreduce the size of the relay 2 and thus to achieve a decrease in costdue to a decrease in size and weight of the relay module 1 or a decreasein an amount of material. In this embodiment, since the protrudinglengths of the base ends 24 on both sides of the horizontal directioncan be decreased, it is possible to minimize the dimension of the relay2 in the horizontal direction and thus to achieve a decrease in size ofthe relay 2.

The configuration of the relay according to the present invention is notlimited to the configuration illustrated in FIG. 5, as long as each tab22 is configured to include a fitting portion 25 drooping along a sidesurface of the relay main body 21 having a rectangular parallelepipedshape with a gap from the side surface. For example, relayconfigurations according to first to eleventh modification examplesillustrated in FIGS. 8 to 18B may be employed. Even when thesemodification examples are employed, the same operational effects as inthe relay 2 can be achieved. FIGS. 8 to 17 are perspective viewsillustrating configurations of relays according to the first to tenthmodification examples and FIGS. 18A and 18B are perspective viewsillustrating a configuration of a relay according to the eleventhmodification examples.

The relay configurations according to the first to eleventh modificationexamples will be described below. The basic configurations of the relaysaccording to the modification examples are the same as the relay 2according to this embodiment. Accordingly, elements equal or similar tothose in this embodiment will be referenced by the same referencenumerals in the drawings, description thereof will not be repeated, anddifferences from the relay 2 will be described below. When the relayconfigurations according to the modification examples are employed, theterminal fittings 3 and the housing member 4 may be configured tocorrespond to the relay configurations (specifically, the arrangement ofthe tabs of the relays) such that the first housing chamber 41 and thesecond housing chambers 42 are disposed in the housing member 4, thatis, the positions of the second housing chambers 42 relative to thefirst housing chamber 41 are set and the terminal fittings 3 are held todirect the pressing directions of the spring portions 35 to the wallportion 44. In any modification example, the number of tabs 22 and thewidth or thickness thereof can be arbitrarily set and the protrudingpositions or protruding lengths of the base ends 24, the height positionof the extending tips of the fitting portions 25, the extending lengthsof the fitting portions from the base ends 24, and the like can bearbitrarily set. For example, these settings may be the same for all thetabs 22 or may be different depending on the tabs 22 in the modificationexamples.

In the relay configuration illustrated in FIG. 5, the base ends 24 ofthe tabs 22 protrude from a pair of side surfaces (the left side surface21 c and the right side surface 21 d) located in the longitudinaldirection (the horizontal direction) of the relay main body 21, but thebase ends 24 may protrude from only one side surface, from twoneighboring side surfaces, or from more side surfaces like the relayconfigurations illustrated in FIGS. 8 to 12.

FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate the configurations of the first modificationexample and the second modification example in which the base ends 24 ofthe tabs 22 protrude from only one side surface (the front surface 21 e)of the relay main body 21. In the relay 2 a according to the firstmodification example illustrated in FIG. 8, the base ends 24 of two tabs22 among four tabs 22 protrude from the vicinity of the top end on thefront surface 21 e and the base ends 24 of the other two tabs 22protrude from a lower height position. On the other hand, in the relay 2b according to the second modification example illustrated in FIG. 9,the base ends 24 of four tabs 22 protrude from the same height positionin the vicinity of the top end on the front surface 21 e.

FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate the configurations of the third modificationexample and the fourth modification example in which the base ends 24 ofthe tabs 22 protrude from two neighboring side surfaces (the frontsurface 21 e and the right side surface 21 d) of the relay main body 21.In the relay 2 c according to the third modification example illustratedin FIG. 10, the base ends 24 of three tabs 22 among four tabs 22protrude from the vicinity of the top end on the front surface 21 e andthe base end 24 of the other one tab 22 protrudes at the same heightfrom the right side surface 21 d. On the other hand, in the relay 2 daccording to the fourth modification example illustrated in FIG. 11, thebase ends 24 of two tabs 22 among four tabs 22 protrude from thevicinity of the top end on the front surface 21 e and the base ends 24of the other two tabs 22 protrude at the same height from the right sidesurface 21 d.

FIG. 12 illustrates the configuration of the fifth modification examplein which the base ends 24 of the tabs 22 protrude from three sidesurfaces (the left side surface 21 c, the front surface 21 e, and theright side surface 21 d) of the relay main body 21. In the relay 2 eaccording to the fifth modification example, among four tabs 22, one tabprotrudes from the left side surface 21 c, two tabs protrude from thefront surface 21 e, and one tab protrudes from the right side surface 21d.

In the first to fifth modification examples (FIGS. 8 to 12), the fittingportions 25 of four tabs 22 are bent substantially at right angle anddownward from the protruding tips of the base ends 24 and extend to beparallel to the side surfaces from which the base ends 24 protrude.Here, the fitting portions 25 extend by the same dimension from the baseends 24 such that the positions (heights) of the extending tips thereofin the vertical direction are equal to each other. The neighboring tabs22 on the same side surface are arranged at a constant interval (whichmay differ).

In the relay configurations illustrated in FIG. 5 and FIGS. 8 to 12, thebase ends 24 of the tabs 22 protrude from the side surfaces of the relaymain body 21, but the base ends 24 may protrude from the top surface 21a of the relay main body 21 as in the sixth to tenth modificationexamples illustrated in FIGS. 13 to 17. In the sixth to tenthmodification examples, the base ends 24 of four tabs 22 protrude fromthe top surface 21 a and are bent substantially at right angle andextend to the side surfaces. The fitting portions 25 of the tabs 22 arebent substantially at right angle and downward from the base ends 24 andextend by the same dimension from the base ends 24 such that thepositions (heights) of the extending tips thereof in the verticaldirection are the same.

In the relay 2 f according to the sixth modification example illustratedin FIG. 13, the fitting portions 25 of four tabs 22 extend from the baseends 24 to be parallel to the front surface 21 e. In the relay 2 gaccording to the seventh embodiment illustrated in FIG. 14, among thefitting portions 25 of four tabs 22, two fitting portions extend fromthe base ends 24 to be parallel to the front surface 21 e and the othertwo fitting portions extend from the base ends 24 to be parallel to theback surface 21 f. In the relay 2 h according to the eighth embodimentillustrated in FIG. 15, among the fitting portions 25 of four tabs 22,three fitting portions extend from the base ends 24 to be parallel tothe front surface 21 e and the other one fitting portion extends fromthe base end 24 to be parallel to the right side surface 21 d. In therelay 2 i according to the ninth embodiment illustrated in FIG. 16,among the fitting portions 25 of four tabs 22, two fitting portionsextend from the base ends 24 to be parallel to the front surface 21 eand the other fitting portions 25 of the remaining two tabs 22 extendfrom the base ends 24 to be parallel to the right side surface 21 d. Inthe relay 2 j according to the tenth embodiment illustrated in FIG. 17,among the fitting portions 25 of four tabs 22, one fitting portionextends from the base end 24 to be parallel to the left side surface 21c, two fitting portions extend from the base ends 24 to be parallel tothe front surface 21 e, and the other one fitting portion extends fromthe base end 24 to be parallel to the right side surface 21 d.

In the relay configurations illustrated in FIG. 5 and FIGS. 8 to 17, thebase ends 24 are completely exposed from the relay main body 21, but atleast parts of the base ends 24 may be covered with a resin. FIGS. 18Aand 18B illustrate the relay configuration in which the entire base ends24 are covered with a resin and this relay configuration will bedescribed below as the eleventh modification example. FIG. 18A is aperspective view illustrating the entire configuration of the relayaccording to the eleventh modification example. FIG. 18B is a viewillustrating the configuration of the relay according to the eleventhmodification example when viewed from the direction of arrow A18 in FIG.18A. In the relay 2 k according to the eleventh modification exampleillustrated in FIGS. 18A and 18B, a plate-like insulating member 26 isattached along one surface (which corresponds to the top surface 21 a inFIG. 5 or the like) of the relay main body 21. The insulating member 26is formed in a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view by moldingan insulating resin or the like. The insulating member 26 is formed toextend in a direction perpendicular to the left side surface 21 c andthe right side surface 21 d facing the tabs 22 and to surround the baseends 24 of the tabs 22.

As illustrated in FIG. 18B, the base ends 24 are covered with theinsulating member 26 in the axial direction thereof and the fittingportions 25 are disposed to protrude from the bottom surface of theinsulating member 26. Protrusions 27 are formed in a shape having astepped section at positions at which the insulating member 26intersects the left side surface 21 c and the right side surface 21 d.The protrusions 27 come in contact with the top end face of the wallportion 44 when the relay 2 k is assembled into the housing member 4.

According to this configuration, the base ends 24 of the tabs 22 can besupported from the upper side by the insulating member 26. Accordingly,since a load applied to the tabs 22 in fitting the tabs 22 to theterminal fittings 3 can be greatly reduced, it is possible to preventdeformation of the tabs 22. As a result, it is possible to keepfavorable electrical connection state between the tabs 22 and theterminal fittings 3 and to prevent a decrease in the holding force ofthe relay 2 k in the housing member 4. By covering the base ends 24 ofthe tabs 22 with the insulating member 26, it is possible to prevent ashort circuit between the neighboring tabs 22.

For example, a configuration in which the base ends are not formed buteach tab 22 includes only the fitting portion 25 and the fitting portion25 protrudes directly from the bottom surface of the insulating member26 can be considered.

While the embodiments of the present invention have been described indetail with reference to the drawings, the above-mentioned embodimentsare only examples of the present invention and the present invention isnot limited to the embodiments. Therefore, modifications in design orthe like without departing from the gist of the present invention areincluded in the scope of the present invention.

According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress damage ofa spring portion of a terminal fitting in an electronic componentmodule.

Although the invention has been described with respect to specificembodiments for a complete and clear disclosure, the appended claims arenot to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying allmodifications and alternative constructions that may occur to oneskilled in the art that fairly fall within the basic teaching herein setforth.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electronic component assembly structurecomprising: an electronic component; a terminal fitting to which theelectronic component is fitted; and a housing member in which theelectronic component and the terminal fitting are accommodated, whereinthe electronic component includes a main body section having arectangular parallelepiped shape and a terminal portion disposed in themain body section, the housing member includes a first housing chamberthat guides and accommodates the main body section therein and a secondhousing chamber that accommodates and holds the terminal fittingtherein, the first housing chamber is formed by surrounding four sidesthereof with a frame-like wall portion rising upright from a bottomportion, and the second housing chamber is formed outside the wallportion interposed therebetween, the terminal portion includes a fittingportion that droops along a side surface of the main body section with agap from the side surface and that is fitted to the terminal fitting,the terminal fitting includes a spring portion that presses the fittingportion, and a pressing direction of the spring portion is held todirect to the wall portion, and the electronic component, the terminalfitting, and the housing member are mutually assembled.
 2. Theelectronic component assembly structure according to claim 1, whereinthe second housing chamber includes an elastically deformable lockingpiece that holds the terminal fitting and that is disposed on theopposite side to the wall portion with the terminal fitting interposedtherebetween.
 3. An electrical junction box comprising: the electroniccomponent assembly structure according to claim
 1. 4. An electricaljunction box comprising: the electronic component assembly structureaccording to claim 2.